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Act now to stop billboards on Philadelphia’s public buildings

A billboard company wants to put advertising signs like this one on Philadelphia’s public buildings.

A billboard company is lobbying Philadelphia officials to allow huge billboards to be hung on the sides of municipal buildings right in the middle of Center City. The preliminary proposal from NJ-based Interstate Outdoor Advertising would see 3 multi-story advertisements attached to theMunicipal Services Building at 1401 John F. Kennedy Blvd. and 2 on the One Parkway Building at 1515 Arch Street.

This proposal is the latest and most outrageous, incursion of commercial advertising into the public space. These billboards would literally be covering up publicly owned buildings, which is a sad, terrible thing. In recent years City Council has allowed outdoor advertising on news kiosks, SEPTA subway entrances, historic Market Street buildings and elsewhere. Outdoor advertising is so out of control in the city that PennDOT recently revoked Philadelphia’s ability to regulate billboards in the city.

It is important that you speak up now to tell the Arts Commission and City Council that you do not want public buildings covered in billboards. The intrinsic character of historic Philadelphia is being lost to rampant outdoor advertising, and this proposal would only further erode the visual environment of the country’s only World-Heritage City.

Take Action: Use the link below to tell Arts Commission members, Councilmembers and Mayor Kenney that you oppose billboards on Philadelphia’s public buildings. Simply fill in your contact information and hit submit and your letter will be delivered! We strongly encourage you to personalize the message to make it even more impactful.